Quail with swollen joint

[Qquails899]

Hello everyone
A while ago I posted about my quail who started limping in september, a few weeks after her toenail broke off. I think it’s getting worse and the leg that she uses for getting around started swelling up. She probably also had scaly mites so the vet gave her a drop of Ivermectin. I started giving her vitamins as the vet suggested. Could this be arthritis or is it something else? Can I do anything about it? I hate to see my bird struggling.

These are pictures of the leg that she uses. The other one isn’t swollen.

 

[007Sean]

Hello everyone
A while ago I posted about my quail who started limping in september, a few weeks after her toenail broke off. I think it’s getting worse and the leg that she uses for getting around started swelling up. She probably also had scaly mites so the vet gave her a drop of Ivermectin. I started giving her vitamins as the vet suggested. Could this be arthritis or is it something else? Can I do anything about it? I hate to see my bird struggling.
View attachment 3334075View attachment 3334076View attachment 3334077
These are pictures of the leg that she uses. The other one isn’t swollen.

Could be a Staphylococcosis infection. The vet should have given you antibiotics, like penicillin, oxytetracycline, erythromycin or even Tylan....but some strains are not effected by antibiotics, due to resistance, the vet should have done stab swabs to identify which strain of Staphylococcus is causing the infection. Staphylococcus aureus is the most commonly seen

One other possibility is MS or Mycoplasma synoviae. It can cause swelling in the joints, redness, hot to the touch. The same drugs are prescribed but have little or no effect on MS but the secondary infection would benefit from the antibiotics.

 

[Qquails899]

Could be a Staphylococcosis infection. The vet should have given you antibiotics, like penicillin, oxytetracycline, erythromycin or even Tylan....but some strains are not effected by antibiotics, due to resistance, the vet should have done stab swabs to identify which strain of Staphylococcus is causing the infection. Staphylococcus aureus is the most commonly seen

One other possibility is MS or Mycoplasma synoviae. It can cause swelling in the joints, redness, hot to the touch. The same drugs are prescribed but have little or no effect on MS but the secondary infection would benefit from the antibiotics.

Thank you. I will bring her back to the vet and see what’s going to happen.
Isn’t it possible that the leg she uses is just overwhelmed and that’s why it’s swollen?

 

[007Sean]

Thank you. I will bring her back to the vet and see what’s going to happen.
Isn’t it possible that the leg she uses is just overwhelmed and that’s why it’s swollen?

Doesn't appear that way to me! The fact that the toe nail was broken/ripped off, or the skin broken and bleeding, is reason enough to suspect it is from infection. Staphylococcus ssp. is a normal flora on the skin and mucus membranes and usually don't cause a problem or infection unless there is an 'entry way', ie; wound(s). Once it's in the body it will travel to the metaphyseal area of the nearby joint and causes osteomyelitis.

 

[Qquails899]

Thank you!

Doesn't appear that way to me! The fact that the toe nail was broken/ripped off, or the skin broken and bleeding, is reason enough to suspect it is from infection. Staphylococcus ssp. is a normal flora on the skin and mucus membranes and usually don't cause a problem or infection unless there is an 'entry way', ie; wound(s). Once it's in the body it will travel to the metaphyseal area of the nearby joint and causes osteomyelitis.

Thank you! I will bring her back to the vet on Wednesday. I won’t be home until then, unfortunately.

 

[Qquails899]

@007Sean We went back and told the vet that the reason for the swelling might be the broken toenail. He gave the bird marbofloxacin and we’ll have to go back twice to give her more. He said the limping leg probably has a bone or tendon problem or something like that and it’ll never improve, but it probably doesn’t hurt, while the swollen one does.
Also, the swelling can only be stopped, but not reduced.
What do you think?

 

[007Sean]

Yeah, he is right but he should have taken swabs and done a culture to determine what it was causing the problem!
Marbofloxacin is a broad spectrum antibiotic.
It does take a long time for tendons and joints to recover, if ever, in some cases. The antibiotics should reduce the swelling, because by killing the bacteria causing the infection, the swelling should be reduce or go away completely.

A disclaimer here, I'm not a vet but have had these issues before, so I do know a little about the causes and the treatments.

 

[Qquails899]

Yeah, he is right but he should have taken swabs and done a culture to determine what it was causing the problem!
Marbofloxacin is a broad spectrum antibiotic.
It does take a long time for tendons and joints to recover, if ever, in some cases. The antibiotics should reduce the swelling, because by killing the bacteria causing the infection, the swelling should be reduce or go away completely.

A disclaimer here, I'm not a vet but have had these issues before, so I do know a little about the causes and the treatments.

The swelling got reduced a bit. Only a little bit. The entire leg is getting purple and her legs are getting crooked. She hardly gets around. One of her eyes started swelling after the antibiotic treatment, just like it did last year. We are now using eye drops, we used two different kinds. She doesn’t feel good. She stopped laying eggs, she isn’t active at all and she has lost weight. Do you think it’d be better to euthanize her…?

 

[007Sean]

The swelling got reduced a bit. Only a little bit. The entire leg is getting purple and her legs are getting crooked. She hardly gets around. One of her eyes started swelling after the antibiotic treatment, just like it did last year. We are now using eye drops, we used two different kinds. She doesn’t feel good. She stopped laying eggs, she isn’t active at all and she has lost weight. Do you think it’d be better to euthanize her…?

Sadly, I'd euthanize her! Stop the agony for her and to yourself. Being responsible caretakers of our animals, means knowing when to relieve those animals of the agony they are going through or whether or not there is hope of a recovery. I personally don't think she will ever recover, so it would be best to end the grief and agony.

 

[Qquails899]

Sadly, I'd euthanize her! Stop the agony for her and to yourself. Being responsible caretakers of our animals, means knowing when to relieve those animals of the agony they are going through or whether or not there is hope of a recovery. I personally don't think she will ever recover, so it would be best to end the grief and agony.

My heart is in pieces. At this point she doesn’t even get up if it’s not necessary. She sleeps all day. She’s no longer interested in sand or wood shavings. She eats a very small amount of food and drinks even less. Her legs got shaky and she became suspiciously tame, she doesn’t get startled if I try to touch her from above. She falls asleep in my hands if I hold her. So I decided I’m going to get the poor bird euthanized.